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nr) eet Fo ad Ge Se Ro yO as Se ga yp Po =e > eg Rw -- he 0, Ry =, a Ei 25 ' EPR ht RISE ah alae ont AN TE FORE SSE SVAT Le oY editoriol comments Ine? Prd A HS Wh i SOLER SEIS FRE BEA PO ely E31 ; Oi : 5 RSI PRLS GAS CET ey NNR SAE or TA cali he Interest Rates It is getting to be like a broken record. With every new round of higher interest rates, it is fair to say there is not a newspaper (daily or weekly) in the country which has not chirped away in its editorial columns about the disastrous effect the rates are having on the economy. " So, with interest rates at a new all-time high, here we are again, using the same arguments we did when they hit 12 per cent, then 15 per cent, and so on. We are sure we echoe the sentiments of many Canadians who are saying they are helpless to do anything about interest rates, so why bother even talking about them. : But do we accept Bank of Canada chief Gerald Bouey who says there is no way interest rates will come down until inflation comes down? Seems that was the argument about six or eight points ago. As for inflation, well, what can one say? The experts are telling us that 12 per cent inflation is not the ceiling; the rate will continue to go up, fueled by higher costs for food, energy and housing. It is interesting that the higher cost for housing is a direct result of measures to curb inflation. Of course, one way to beat the high interest rates these days is not to borrow money. Unfortunately, most people have-to borrow money for such things as a home, a new car, or household luxuries like washing machines and stoves. Even with mortgage rates at new highs, they do not at'this time seem to be having a dampening effect on demand. If people are prepared to accept 18 per cent (after an initial cooling off period to get over the psychological shock) they likely will do the same at 20 or 22 per cent. In fact, a year from now, people who borrowed at the present rate may be darn glad they did. We all know what high interest rates mean to the average consumer, and what they mean for small businesses trying to maintain inventory levels. But what about the hidden social costs of runaway inflation and interest rates? Family counsellors say that in many cases, money is at the root of marriage breakdowns. What kind of an effect does it have on children when both parents are working their tails off just to make ends meet? What about the stress and the strain on young families who suddenly find that despite their honest efforts to save and cut back, they just can't carry it financially? What about the heart attacks, the burn-outs, the alcoholism, the so-called "white-collar" crimes that might very well be due in part to financial worry and strain? Have we calculated all these costs into the . inflation-interest rate equation? The sad part about it all is that Canada and other 2 a & NN S NW NR SBS A \ ON 557 ai WR NN: oe PETROCAN "WELL, HOW 17 FEEL 70 BF An OUTYCOON 7° ad ik = NN WS oF NR OW ot oN SS * ; WN TA 8 $23 RY SIN o : Cisne RETRENS Dh = EEE. UE ERLANREIIN Sais 3 SN wwe NN xe AM Sete. v= countries in the Western World have been living with the situation for about a decade, and things are going from bad to worse. Nobody today seems to be any closer to solving the problems than they were five or ten years ago. In fact, If anything, what our federal politicians and so-called experts are trying to do is not get a - handle on the situation, but rather condition us to believe it is something we'll just have to live with. Maybe they are right. But some people are beginning to question whether the price is worth It. There are plenty of historical examples which illustrate what happens in society when inflatioh and the supply of money go haywire. An Easier Way In an advertising battle that is without prece- dent, the two cola giants, Pepsi and Coke, have taken off the gloves in their war of words and images to convince consumers their product is indeed number one. - To say that the ad campaigns by Pepsi and Coke have been aggressive would be something of an understatement. The makers of consumer products have tradi- tionally shied away from mentioning their competi- tors by name, never mind showing their symbols and logos being blocked out or disappearing over the horizon. The reason for the head-to-head fight is simple enough: the cola market in Canada is estimated to be worth about $1 billion each year. Not only is Coke having a battle royal with Pepsi, but it now seems the federal government department which oversees truth in advertising has also stepped in, saying that polis indicate some of the claims by Coke just aren't so at this time. Coke says it has a whole new batch of ads ready to go; ads that will be even more aggressive and hard-hitting. And you can be sure that the good folks over at Pepsi are burning the midnight oll to come up with some new ads of their own. a This kind of advertising war must be costing the two companies a pile of money. After all, Bill Cosby mugging for Coke doesn't work for actors union scale rates, and the cost for 30 seconds of prime time TV space would send most of us to the poor house. And think of all the business and creative talent that is being expended on this advertising war. One would think that before the two companies spend untold millions on their next round of advertising, some bright individual might have suggested a sure fire way for one of the companies to grab a bigger share of the cola drinking market. Has it not occurred to Pepsi or Coke that a substantial reduction in the price of their product might be one way to beat the competition? GOD BLESS!! I spent the entire weekend talking to these people, feeding them, and driving them to a ferry, half an hour away, where they could embark and spread the faith on an Indian reservation. They can talk like gurus, sleep like a bomb, and eat like horses. My son arrived on a Thursday night, and had me so befuddled by astrology and the words of the If you believe that you are going to join the Great Spirit or some other form of It, Her, Him, and you conk out, and meet all (Who, in his right, or even celestial mind, would want to see all his-her loved ones again? There'd be some right hair- & = @ » vom i . : your loved ones again, and float around on that big Sugar Candy mountain in the sky, Fe and not ever work again, bless you, and good luck. : prophet, that I slank off to bed about mid-night got up early so I wouldn't have to face him again. That afternoon, a friend, Margaret, arrived from the city, at 80 miles an hour, on her motor-bike. They left for the island. At 7:30 that night, Lise arrived, 22, bright as a whip, endearing, giving up a - weekend with exams approaching, to take part in the teaching mission. Fed and slept her at our place, delivered her to the ferry next day. - Saturday, son Hugh and Margaret arriyed back and took off for the city, back to work. Sunday morning I went to pick up Lise at the ferry and saw her off on the bus, ready to resume her studies for a M.A. in Statistics, of all things. . 0.K. An old Jewish guy can stand that. But Monday; I got a letter, courtesy of the Collingwood weekly, that reinforced my decision to fight back. It was from William J. McCormick Esq., Chetwynd, Chetwynd Drive, Rosemont, Pennsylvania. It was the damnedest thing (pardon the expression in a religious column) that I have ever seen. On the outside of the envelope was his address, and mine, thus: Honorable Bill Smiley, (Teacher and Columnist). Down in the right-hand corner was a fat green label stating: Preferential: Do Not Delay, Label 110, 19-72. On the back of the envelope was this: Dear letter, go upon your way Over mountain, plain or sea. - God bless 'all who speed your flight To where I wish you to be. And bless all those beneath the roof Where I would bid you rest; But bless even more the one to whom This letter is addressed. Inside were the following: a letter from the Speaker's Office, House of Commons, London, England, thanking Mr. McCormick for his copy of an address given at Haver- ford, Pen.; a letter from Buckingham 'Palace thanking him for the copy of the 'Holy Name' and an accompanying letter (the Palace letter had a grammar error); a one-inch by six-inch card, in green, blue and red, announcing "God Bless You," and a twelve-thousand word copy of the address by Wm. J. McCormick to the Holy Name Society of Rosemont, Penn. It was all a bit too much. Somewhere in his speech, Wm. J. had a number of aphorisms about brevity being the soul of wit. As you may have noticed, I don't preach much iin this space. That is I don't preach religion. In the first place, I am not learned enough in the scriptures, whatever scriptures happen to turn you on. By the way, excuse the use of a capital "'S" for scriptures. It merely means writings. It's not that I don't have a friendly chat with God once in awhile. I do, and I'm sure he enjoys it, though he never talks back. In that respect, he is about two hundred per cent more amiable to talk to than my wife. In the second place (see above), I am not pure enough or good enough to preach to others, though, by George, there are quite a few of you sinners out there who need a little touch of hellfire to frighten you. And in the third place, it's none of my business. If you want to bang your head on the ground in the general direction of the East, do a Holy Roll on the floor, speak in tongues, lie on a bed of nails, or slurp wine and eat dry biscuits at Christmas and Easter, that's your problem. I am basically a Jew at heart. / pulling if some of my old girl-friends and my wife got together for a Sunday brunch at one of those fly-ins in the sky; and I sure as heaven don't want to meet my children, nor my brothers and sisters, after I croak. Wouldnt mind seeing the grandboys for about seven minutes.) So. Generally I mind my own business about other people's beliefs. But this past week has made me strike back, in desperation. First of all, I got caught in a welter of Ba-ha-i's. My wife, son and daughter are adherents of this comparatively new faith. Its beliefs you can't fight with. They're the best of the older religions. Their purpose is to spread unity, the one-ness of man, in our world. To battle that would be like condemning Motherhood. They have no wild or bizarre ceremonies. They have simple meetings, variously called Feasts, Fasts, ' They harm nobody, except old guys like me who are dragooned into driving people to such events. Then he took 'off for another ten thousand words. Enough religion. I'm going ° to look up a rabbi tomorrow.